Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said on Saturday that the government is contacting the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Interpol for assistance in enquiry into the Axact fake diploma scandal.
“In light of the developments that have come through in the enquiry conducted by the FIA so far, we have decided to write to the FBI within the next two days to ask for legal assistance,” Nisar told reporters after a meeting on the issue. He added that the Interior Ministry would also contact Interpol and British authorities for assistance as well.
“We are contacting Interpol because we can seek information from them on the universities mentioned in the report,” the interior minister said, adding that the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) and Pakistan Software Association have been briefed by FIA regarding developments in the case.
“The initial enquiry will be completed within the next seven to 10 days and after that we will decide the next step to take and whether an FIR should be registered,” Nisar said, assuring that a fair and transparent investigation would be carried out in the matter. “We will not succumb to any pressure,” he said.
The interior minister said that he had directed the FIA to enquire into Axact following a report published in the New York Times. “The Interior Ministry is only concerned in the Axact case because it was published in an international newspaper and I decided we had to take action.”
Claiming that the timeframe for investigations is 90 days, Nisar said, “As this is a sensitive case we are trying to complete investigations in the minimum time required.”
Further, he urged media to not give in to speculation and not quote FIA sources in reports as it is an investigative body.
